New Book Reviews for Kids

New Book Reviews

The first book in the Ballpark Mysteries series features the Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox season is jeopardized when their star slugger's lucky bat is stolen right after batting practice. When no one else can find the bat cousins Mike and Kate decide to save the day.

Fisher was "born" when a defective robot triggered the pod right before the entire Ark was destroyed. Fisher was the only biological being to survive. Fisher knows his name, how to talk and one hundred ways to catch fish. Fisher also knows that unless he finds more people, the human race will end with him.

So Fisher sets off in search of other Arks accompanied by his defective robot protector Click and a friendly baby woolly mammoth that Fisher dubs Protein just in case he needs to eat him later. Out in the world the trio encounters killer giant parrots, swarms of tiny, vicious crocodiles and not so friendly nanotechnology.

First Mate Jack Sparrow, an employee of the East India Trading Company, is somewhere in the Caribbean when his cargo ship is attacked. Luckily, the pirate captain of the attacking ship is a friend of Jack’s, and doesn’t steal his entire cargo. Unluckily, Captain Baimbridge, furious at being attacked, boarded, and stolen from by a female pirate, tries to attack la Dona Pirata. In the ensuing swordfight, Baimbridge suffers from a heart attack and dies, leaving Jack in charge of the ship (though not officially captain… yet.)

Across the ocean, a princess and her brother set sail from a magically hidden island in search of their missing father. They are captured and sold into slavery, but not before Princess Amenirdis casts a protective spell over herself, altering her appearance to that of an old ugly hag. Separated from each other by the cruel slave trade, Amenirdis (now calling herself by the name Ayisha) longs for her brother and hopes for a chance at freedom.

Back at port, EITC employee Cutler Beckett comes into possession of a few pieces of golden jewelry he believes are connected to the legendary island of Kerma - and if he can locate the slave these pieces were stolen off of, he can locate Kerma’s treasure. His hunt soon leads him to suspect Ayisha’s involvement with the royal Kerman family, though her disguise and self-imposed language barrier deter Beckett’s ability to question her further.

Upon Jack’s return to shore with the pirate-lightened cargo ship, and explanation to Cutler Beckett the events of the pirate attack, he is promoted to Captain (huzzah! huzzah!) and given command of the vessel Wicked Wench. Beckett, ironically convinced that Ayisha was once a slave on the island of Kerma, tells Cap’n Jack to offer the woman escape from Beckett’s ownership and then charm her into giving up the location of the island. Then, Jack is to return to Beckett with the coordinates and the fabled Kerman treasure - and Beckett will set sail for Kerma with a dozen slave ships, prepared to snatch up the citizens.

Of course, we all know Cap’n Jack to be a moral man. Don’t we? And of course, Cap’n Jack has another plan up his sleeve - one that doesn’t involve stealing an entire population to be slaves or giving Cutler Beckett any treasure at all.

In The Price of Freedom, Pirates of the Caribbean fans will get to know Jack in an entirely new light than the four movies and love him all the more for it. His wobbling morality and quick wit, paired with his prowess at the helm (of both a ship and a woman) make him an entirely lovable, dimensional character. Yet one doesn’t have to have seen the movies to fall in love with this adventurous naval romp. It's not one to miss.

Harvey’s mom tries to tell him about Doodleday, but he doesn’t listen. Soon, his drawings are coming to life, and mom’s nowhere to be found! Harvey draws more and more, trying to get rid of everything… but as you can imagine, things get out of hand pretty quickly.

Mohammed Sami Sabiri stopped using his first name the day his father reacted angrily when Andy and Marty nicknamed Mohammed "Prophet." Sami, Andy and Marty have been best friends ever since. Sami's father is not so happy with the friendship. He even sent Samis to a private high school to get him away from their influence. As the only Muslim at the school, Sami is harrassed almost every day. Sami didn't realize how good his life was.

Sheldon McGlone has pretty much been on autopilot ever since his father was killed in the whale attack. But the Brain was sure that the whale attack, the bird poop incident and the possum car theft ring were all connected. The Brain is also certain that he is a greater slueth that all the detectives he was named for. Since all great detectives he needs a sidekick. He picks Sheldon.

When Sheldon encounters a serverd human leg and an enormous salt water crocodile barking like a dog in the Brain's bedroom, he should have run. Instead he finds himself drawn into a mad cap adventure to thwart an international villian.

In this sequel to Numbers Adam has inherited his mother's ability to see people's death dates when he looks in their eyes. To make matters worse, when he and his grandmother move to London he discovers that most people he meets have the same date, 01/01/2027, and the girl he likes has been having nightmares about him, her baby and fire for months.

Nigel is about to turn 100 and he has yet to have a girlfriend. His problem is that, although he is a vampire, he does not have super strength, preternatural speed, or hypnotizing beauty. In fact he is weaker and slower than most of his classmates, and sunlight gives him a bad case of acne. In short, he is forever trapped in the body of a geeky 15 year old boy. How will he ever be able to impress the beautiful new girl and maybe, someday, get to bite someone?

Julia and Eliza are best friends. They are also family. Even though they are the same age, Julia is Eliza's aunt. Of course, Eliza doesn't call her best friend "Aunt Julia" but still...they are more tied together in ways most friends are. That was never a problem...until the summer they turned twelve

Eliza still likes to pretend, just the way she and Julia have done all their lives. But Julia finds it harder and harder to enter that make-believe world. There are too many distractions in the real world. Some are terrible, like worrying about whether or not her mother will survive her tour of duty in Iraq. Others are much more pleasant, like a certain very cute boy named Michael.

Where do your loyalties lie when you find yourself changing, pulling away from a best friend who is so much more than just a friend?